Mbalula deploys task team to Cape Flats

Mbalula says the killing of innocent people in our democracy is unacceptable.(SABC)

Police Minister Fikile Mbalula has announced he will send a task team to the Cape Flats to investigate the shooting of 11 people at the Marikana area in Philippi East on Friday night.

Mbalula, as an senior African National Congress (ANC) NEC member, was addressing thousands of ANC Youth League members and supporters at Mandeni on the KwaZulu-Natal north coast.

The shootings followed an earlier incident in the area on Tuesday this week, in which seven people were killed in what was believed to be vigilante murders.

Mbalula says the killing of innocent people in our democracy is unacceptable. “We appeal the community members not to take the law into their own hands, we are sending our task team to go and attend the situation in Cape town. We are deeply disturbed and worried about what is going on there but they will bring it under control. It is unfortunate that ordinary and innocent people have died but our job is to maintain law and order and our police will do that.”

Western Cape police have given the assurance that the killing of eleven people at the Marikana informal settlement last night will receive the highest attention. Angry community members marched on the local police station demanding police protection.

Police Marikana residents earlier marched to the local police station to demand protection. They occupied the precinct and called for more police officers to be deployed to the area. Community leader Ntsikelelo Konisani.

Police spokesperson, Novela Potelwa, says they’ve established a specialised team of detectives to probe the murders.

Police say the motive for the killing has not yet been established. They’ve also confirmed that seven other people were gunned down in the area earlier this week.